Friday, September 28, 2007

It's important to note that I am not anti-public education. I've made the decision to home school my children based on numerous things: my experiences in education college, my experiences as a teacher, the specific learning needs of my children, and my desire to share a love of learning with them. In short, I really home school because I enjoy my children and love to be with them and teach them.

Other families have different goals, different dynamics and different experiences. I know that children CAN have positive public school experiences. I know that there are some GREAT public school teachers out there (there are also terrible ones like the special ed teachers I saw laughing at the developmentally handicapped child who couldn't figure out how to use a jump rope).

What I don't agree with is the NEA making blanket statements about home schooling, especially when they have absolutely no statistics or studies to back up their resolutions. I agree that not every family should choose home education, but I also think that public education is not the solution for every child either. The difference between me and the NEA, though, is that I'm willing to agree that each family has the right to choose.

The fact is that most states have enough accountability for homeschoolers that very few children are going to fall through the cracks academically or socially. Certainly, the public schools cannot claim a 100% success rate... so how can the NEA even begin to challenge home schooling?

News Alert!

About Me

I'm a stay-at-home mom with 5 children (ages 7-14), some of whom are adopted and some of whom have physical special needs, and all of whom are pretty nifty. I started this blog as a chance for me to outlet my thoughts, and to justify how much I talk to myself (I'm thinking through a new blog entry!).